Longpom

[Bob Petty]

A question.
I recall a drunken conversation I had years passed with a AB I sailed with in the late 50s, (I must admit to a lot of drunken Conversations)
Who told me of a class of WW11 ship called a Jeep, not the flat top Jeeps that followed fleet air craft carriers to replenish lost planes.
But a cargo ship built for just one North Atlantic trip, they had no shaped bow or stern plats but flat plate cut and welded to shape the stern and bow.
Sparse accommodation and sparely rigged.
If some one in old sailor land could help me on this I would be very grateful.

[Tony Wilding]

HELLO, Yes they were referred to as jeeps, unofficially, official classification was Scandinavian class, as design originated in Scandinavia, some built by William Gray in Hartlepool Yorks, most built in canada in WW2, Quite small ships, Canadian ones were given Park names, LISCOM PARK.jpg were of rivetted construction, and bow and stern was of normal shape, they were proper ships, lots were used for carrying bulk timber cargoes, hope this helps. certainly not built for just 1 voyage, some lasted over 25 years. 42 of this type were built in Canada.

[Tony Wilding]

hi, photos of two more of the same class, first one as built during WW2, second one after being repaired, you can see they had a normal bow. FAWKNER_PARK_B5_River.jpgTARONGAPARKFEDERALRANGER.jpg

[Albert Bishop]

Never saw a jeep, but remember an old bosun saying they had a tendency to capsize easily, Albi

[E.Martin]

I can recall seeing plenty of Jeeps during the fifties,mostly carrying pit props and i think Sparter Grass? lots of them had problems with
listing.

[Tony Wilding]

lots of ships had problems listing when carrying those cargoes, dont think a jeep was any worse.

[Roger French]

The Canadian-built Park boats had the same hull design, engines etc, as Liberty Ships (Sam boats) but a different superstructure. I sailed on one, the SS Chandler, ex Crystal Park.
Jeeps were something else.

[Tony Wilding]

The Park named ships, apart from the smaller Scandinavian type ( jeeps ) were in fact Fort class merchant ships, many launched with fort names , but changed to a park name on completion, this was because they were all owned by the Park steamship co, a Crown Corporation, information from the book The Oceans, Forts and Parks by Mitchell And Sawer, the American Liberty Ship was a much modified design of the plans of SS Dorington Court a W L, Thompson design UK. All Forts and Parks were rivetted construction, Oceans were welded, as were 99 % of all Liberty ships, SAM Boats were American Liberty Ships on Lease Lend to Great Britian,, many launched with a american name, but changed to a Sam name on allocation to GB.

[Trader]

I sailed in the "Uskmouth" of Jones of Newport in 1959. She was a West Hartlepool jeep built by Grays at that port. As has been said they were handy for timber and Esparto grass cargoes. She had an old up and down triple expansion steam engine, top speed about 9 knots. She was a good old job, chatty but happy, and we had some good runs. Timber from Archangel, Russia, coal to Madeira and Genoa and Livorno, phosphates from Casablanca to Dublin and Cork.
Before I joined her she was carrying Esparto grass to Granton near Leith and Watchett, Somerset from North Africa.

Here is a photo of her with Esparto Grass. Not my photo but thanks to whoever took it.

Alec.

[Tony Wilding]

I think it was the nature of the cargo, timber or esparto grass that caused the list, have seen photos of many classes of ships with severe lists when carrying timber, timber is absorbant to water, if in heavy weather the outboard timber will become a lot heavier if thats the weather side, and stowed high on deck would soon upset the trim,